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Green Built Specifications

A good home must be made, not bought. Joyce Maynard

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Village Homes is proud to be a Green Built provider. These Green Built specifications allow ALL Village Homes LLC to be certified as Green Built Homes and meet the requirements of the Green Built Homes Checklist, one of the most comprehensive guides for green building in the U.S.

To receive Green Built certification a home must earn at least 60 points from the Green Built checklist. Incorporating all of the Norwood Custom Homes/Village Homes checklist items will result in a home that earns 82 points.

Certification is granted based on the assumption that the following checklist items will be incorporated in all homes. Homes must meet a set of Basic Requirements and incorporate items from other checklist categories as listed below.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS - all Required

  • WISCONSIN ENERGY STAR Home must comply with Wisconsin ENERGY STAR program standards regarding energy efficiency, ventilation, combustion safety and indoor air quality.
  • A Home Performance with ENERGY STAR in-home evaluation must be conducted prior to beginning work on all remodeling project involving an energy component.
  • ENERGY STAR APPLIANCES: All appliances (clothes washer, dishwasher, refrigerator microwave oven) provided must be ENERGY STAR or each appliance performs in the top 50% of its Energy Guide rating.
  • EROSION CONTROL: Builder must complete and submit the erosion control plan checklist found in the Interactive Checklist or submit and comply with the erosion control plan required for building permits by the local municipality.
  • RECYCLING: Builder must recycle cardboard as required by state law and use at least one recycled content material (minimum 50% recycled content).
  • TROPICAL HARDWOODS: No Luan or other tropical hardwoods (plywood, doors, flooring, etc.) are allowed unless certified by Forest Stewardship Council, Smart Wood or approved "third party" organization.
  • PROVIDE GREEN GUIDE LABEL: This label will be prepared by the GBH program and provided to the builder as part of the home registration process.
  • MERCURY THERMOSTATS: No permanently installed mercury thermostats are allowed.

SITING & LAND USE (2 Points)

  • Home located within 0.5 miles of shopping/offices/retail.
  • Home located in Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND).

LANDSCAPE CONSERVATION & STORM WATER MGMT (13 Points)

  • Use of redundant straw bale and silt fencing in areas with steep slopes (greater than 12% grade) or areas of concentrated runoff flow.
  • Protect on-site storm sewer inlets with straw bales, silt fencing or equivalent measures.
  • Save and reuse all site topsoil.
  • Trees and natural features on site protected during construction.
  • Chip and reuse site-cleared wood and brush as mulch.
  • Wash out concrete trucks in slab or pavement sub-base areas.
  • Balance cut and fill to eliminate earth removal from site.
  • Native landscape planting (min. 20% of non-paved areas).
  • Provide a list of native, non-invasive plants to homeowners.
  • Provide information to homeowners on how to minimize fertilizer and pesticide use.
  • Establish and maintain a single stabilized construction entrance.
  • Provide onsite supervision and coordination during site clearing, grading, trenching, paving, and installation of utilities to ensure that green building measures are implemented.
  • Use of recycled materials in lieu of silt fencing.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY (20 Points)

  • Energy heels of 7" or more on trusses.
  • Blower door test with 0.15 CFM/sq. ft or less -- determined at completion of home. (New Home) OR Blower door test indicating air leakage reduction of at least 20%. (Remodeling)
  • Gaps between can light housings and drywall caulked.
  • Gaps between exhaust fan housings and drywall caulked.
  • All penetrations to the exterior are sealed both inside and outside.
  • Can lights in insulated ceilings are sealed and insulated.
  • Windows throughout are ENERGY STAR or have a U value less than or equal to 0.35 (NFRC label).
  • Windows throughout have an air leakage rating less than or equal to 0.06 cfm/ft.
  • No metal frame windows in house, including basements, unless thermally broken.
  • East facing glass has NFRC label solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) less than 0.40.
  • West facing glass has NFRC label solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) less than 0.40.
  • Install a 90%-94% efficiency furnace (ENERGY STAR label encouraged).
  • Furnace located to minimize length of total duct runs.
  • All ductwork joints sealed with mastic or aluminum tape.
  • Ceiling fan pre-wires provided in habitable rooms (min. 2 pre-wires not including bedrooms).
  • Document proper sizing of HVAC system using Manual J or equivalent.
  • High efficiency fireplace such as direct vent gas, Rumford, or masonry heater; or no fireplace installed.

MATERIALS SELECTION (23 Points)

  • Design house features to reduce materials consumption (e.g. patios in place of decks).
  • Recycled fly ash concrete used (minimum 15% fly ash content).
  • Low toxicity form release agents used on concrete form work.
  • Reusable foundation bracing not constructed of framing lumber used.
  • Provide weather protection for stored materials.
  • No use of 2x10 or greater dimension solid lumber in floors or roof systems.
  • Engineered wood "I" joists or truss joists used for floors.
  • Trusses or "I" joists used for roofs.
  • Engineered lumber products for beams, joists or headers.
  • High strength 1/2 inch drywall substituted for 5/8 drywall on ceilings.
  • Siding and exterior trim primed on all sides.
  • Insulated sheathing used.
  • Exterior foundation walls insulated with min. 1" of foam insulation.
  • Spay insulation in cantilevers & living spaces over garage
  • 30 year asphalt architectural shingles
  • Regionally grown from substantially managed forests
  • Recycled content carpet pad used (100% of pad used).
  • Carpet provided by a company that agrees to take it back for recycling at end of its useful life.
  • Domestically grown interior wood panel doors used. Oak, Maple, Pine
  • Domestic hardwood trim (min. 75% of trim stock).

INDOOR AIR QUALITY (9 Points)

  • Weather-sealed door to reduce carbon monoxide infiltration.
  • Foundation drainage system tied to sealed sump pit for potential radon mitigation.
  • All ductwork joints sealed with water based, low V.O.C. mastic (less than 30g/l) or metalized tape.
  • ENERGY STAR qualified residential ventilating (bath) fans used.
  • Washed stone installed under basement slab for potential radon mitigation.
  • Rough-in venting provided for potential radon mitigation.
  • Install CO Detector
  • Formaldehyde-free insulation used.

PLUMBING & WATER CONSERVATION (3 Points)

  • Install gas water heater with energy factor of more than 0.62 for direct vented.

WASTE REDUCTION, RECYCLING & DISPOSAL (7 Points)

  • Recycle or reuse job site waste (glass, aluminum cans, plastic bottles and cardboard are required to be recycled by law and receive NO points).
    • asphalt roofing (75% landfill diversion)
    • wood scraps (75% landfill diversion)
    • pallets (75% landfill diversion)
    • metal (75% landfill diversion)
    • gypsum wall board (75% landfill diversion)
    • brick and block (75% landfill diversion)
  • Install built-in kitchen recycling center to include two or more bins.
  • Donate excess materials to a non-profit organization or charity.

BUILDER OPERATIONS (4 Points)

  • At least 80% of homes built annually are built to Green Built Home standards.
  • At least one recent action taken to visibly market Green Built Home program.
  • Conduct homebuyer orientation during final walk-through (point out Green Built features, how to maintain them, operate them, etc.).
  • At least one recent training event conducted for realtor/sales staff.

EFFICIENT USE OF SPACE (1 Points)

  • Above grade finished and conditioned space 2000-2249 sq. ft.
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